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Abstract

When studying human social and cultural diversity, there are usually distinctions being made based on world regions. This leads commonly to the assumption that there is a continental divide between Europe and Asia. However, researchers from many disciplines point out that Eurasia should rather be seen as a unity. In the comparative anthropological study CHRIS HANN presents in this video, he found commonalities across the Eurasian landmass at the level of values that can be traced back over centuries and distinguish it from other parts of the world – in particular from the settler societies of North America. It is argued that this value consensus was promoted by cultural exchanges between East and West that took place along the Silk Road and across the Indian Ocean over thousands of years of Eurasian history.